“All young people, regardless of sexual orientation or identity, deserve a safe and supportive environment in which to achieve their full potential.” – Harvey Milk

Powerful words. And at PFLAG, we know firsthand how true they are are: Family rejection of LGBTQ youth is directly linked to serious risk of physical and behavioral health problems, including drug use, risk of contracting HIV and STDs, depression, homelessness, and — devastatingly — self harm.

In fact, LGBT young adults who reported having rejecting families are 8.4 times more likely to report having attempted suicide compared with peers from families that reported no or low levels of family rejection.